Race course play set for floating toy vehicles

ABSTRACT

Playsets for use on a water surface, including a toy vehicle configured to travel along the water surface and a buoyant race course, where the race course includes a guide that defines the race course on the water surface, a start platform that supports the toy vehicle, a start gate that releases the toy vehicle from the start platform onto the water surface at the start of the race course, and a finish gate that marks the end of the race course.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This is a nonprovisional patent application claiming the benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) of the filing of the provisional application Ser. No. 61/654,726 titled RACE COURSE PLAY SET FOR FLOATING TOY VEHICLES, filed Jun. 1, 2012, which is hereby incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure relates to toy vehicle playsets, and more particularly to playsets including a floating race course for self-propelled floating toy vehicles.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

A natural aspect of playing with toy vehicles is racing such vehicles against one other. Racing play can be substantially enhanced through the use of playsets that include a defined race course within which the toy vehicles may race. Such playsets may additionally provide an appropriate environment for the race by virtue of their design, their decoration, or by incorporating appropriate race course features.

At the same time, playsets that facilitate imaginative play while bathing may increase a young child's enjoyment of the bath, and thereby decrease their resistance to bathing, to the relief of a parent or caregiver. One way of enhancing bath time play is to provide a buoyant race course for toy vehicles suitable for use in the bath tub.

Examples of toy vehicle playsets and toy vehicles and accessories may be found in U.S. Pat. Nos. US2,565,359, US3,271,896, US3,447,258, US4,652,248, US4,715,602, US5,078,642, and US5,651,736; and in U.S. Patent Publication US20110244755. The complete disclosures of the above patents and patent applications are herein incorporated by reference for all purposes.

SUMMARY

In one embodiment, the present invention includes a playset for use on a water surface, the playset including a toy vehicle configured to travel along the water surface, and a buoyant race course. The disclosed race course in turn includes a floating guide that defines a race course on the water surface, a start platform that is adapted to support the toy vehicle, a start gate that is adapted to release the toy vehicle from the start platform onto the water surface at the start of the race course, and a finish gate that marks the end of the race course.

In another embodiment, the present invention includes a race course playset, the playset including a first and a second buoyant toy cars, where each car is configured to propel itself along a water surface, and a buoyant race course. The race course in turn includes an inclined start platform that defines the start of the race course, a start gate that is coupled to the start platform and that is configured to be selectively transitioned between a closed configuration that retains the toy cars on the start platform and an open configuration that releases the toy cars at the start of the race course, an arched finish gate that defines the end of the race course, and first and second side boundaries that are coupled at a first end to the start platform and coupled at a second end to the arched finish gate, where the side boundaries flexibly define the race course.

The advantages of selected embodiments of the present invention will be more readily understood after considering the drawings and the Detailed Description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts a playset according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 depicts an exemplary toy vehicle for the playset of FIG. 1 shown in exploded view.

FIG. 3 depicts the playset of FIG. 1 in an extended configuration and defining a race course on a water surface.

FIG. 4 depicts the playset of FIG. 3, including a toy vehicle in a starting position on a start platform.

FIG. 5 depicts the playset of FIG. 4, with the start gate in its open configuration, and the toy vehicle leaving the start platform.

FIG. 6 depicts the playset of FIG. 5, with the toy vehicle negotiating the defined race course on the water surface.

FIG. 7 depicts the playset of FIG. 6, with the toy vehicle passing beneath the finish gate of the race course.

FIG. 8 depicts an alternative exemplary embodiment of a playset of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Selected playsets of the present invention can be used to create a race course on the surface of a body of water, for example for use by a child sitting in a bathtub filled with water, during bath time. The toy vehicles of the playset are both buoyant and self-propelled, and are retained within the race course by floating guides that define sides of the course. FIG. 1 depicts a playset 10 according to the present invention. The disclosed playsets include at least one toy vehicle 12 and a buoyant race course set 14 that are capable of defining an elongated pathway on water.

Preferably, toy vehicle 12 is buoyant, and readily floats upon or near the surface of even a modest volume of water, such as is easily contained within a bathtub. Although toy vehicle 12 is depicted as a car, it should be appreciated that the vehicle may alternatively be configured to represent a boat, a submarine, a plane, an animal, or a humanoid character, among others. In one embodiment, the playset of the invention includes two such toy vehicles 12. More particularly, each toy vehicle 12 may be a 1:55 scale toy vehicle.

In addition to being buoyant, toy vehicle 12 may also be configured to be self-propelled. In one embodiment, buoyant toy vehicle 12 may be configured to travel on the surface of water, and may incorporate a screw-type propeller, a paddle member, or other suitable propulsion mechanism. Alternatively, or in addition, the buoyant toy vehicle may be self-propelled with respect to travel on solid surfaces, and may incorporate wheels, tracks, legs, or other suitable propulsion mechanism. Preferably, the buoyant toy vehicle 12 is self-propelled with respect to both land travel and water travel. For example, buoyant toy vehicle 12 includes a plurality of wheels that roll on land and also are adapted to include paddle members, thereby being configured to travel both on land and on the surface of water.

In order to power the propulsion mechanism, the buoyant toy vehicle 12 includes an energy storage device and a propulsion element that is adapted to convert the energy stored by the energy storage device into motion of the buoyant toy vehicle. The energy storage device may be configured to store electrical energy, such as a battery, or it may be configured to store mechanical energy. In one embodiment, buoyant toy vehicle 12 includes an energy storage device that is a pullback motor, and a propulsion mechanism that is a mechanical motor. The energy stored in the pullback motor is mechanical energy that is stored by a spring member when the buoyant toy vehicle is “pulled back” with a reverse rotation of the drive wheels. Upon release, the stored mechanical energy is converted by the motor into forward rotation of the drive wheels, and therefore into forward motion.

An exemplary buoyant toy vehicle 12 that is a toy car is depicted in FIG. 2 in an exploded view, including an upper car chassis 15 and a lower chassis 16 that when combined enclose a propulsion element that is a pullback motor 17 coupled to rear drive wheels 18. As shown in FIG. 2, drive wheels 18 may incorporate paddle features 19, thereby enabling buoyant toy vehicle 12 to be self-propelled on dry surfaces as well as while floating. Front wheels 20 may be coupled to a front axle 21, and may be configured to rotate freely.

As shown in FIG. 3, the race course set 14 may be placed onto a water surface to define a race course 22 for the buoyant toy vehicle 12 to travel along. Race course set 22 may include a start platform 24 that is adapted to support at least one buoyant toy vehicle 12. Start platform 24 preferably includes a start gate 26 adapted to release buoyant toy vehicle 12 from the start platform 24 and onto the water surface within the race course 22 defined by the race course set 14. More specifically, one or more guides 28 can be flexed to define the sides or edges of the race course 22. For example, the buoyant guides 28 may include two edge boundaries configured to float on the water surface, defining edge boundaries that can be flexed to define a nonlinear race course or straightened to define a linear race course. This nonlinear race course may extend from start platform 24 to a finish gate 30 that marks the end of the defined race course 22.

In one embodiment of the invention, start platform 24 may take the form of a ramp or inclined plane. Where the start platform is a ramp, a running surface of the ramp preferably slopes down toward the beginning of the water-portion of race course 22. The start platform 24 may itself be buoyant and self-supporting, or the start platform 24 may be supported on the water surface by virtue of the inherent buoyancy of other components of the race course set 14.

As mentioned previously, at the base of start platform 24 may be a start gate 26. Start gate 26 typically is a barrier or partial barrier that is coupled to the start platform 24 such that start gate 26 has an open configuration and a closed configuration. In the closed configuration (as depicted in FIG. 1), start gate 26 physically prevents buoyant toy vehicle 12 from leaving the start platform 24, while in the open configuration (as depicted in FIG. 3), start gate 26 may permit the buoyant toy vehicle 12 to leave start platform 24 and enter race course 22. In one embodiment, start gate 26 is mounted on a shaft, so that start gate 26 is pivotably coupled to start platform 24, and the start gate may be selectively transitioned between the closed configuration and the open configuration. For example, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, start gate 26 may include a handle or tab 32 that may be turned to transition start gate 20 between its open and closed configuration. Typically, start gate 20 is configured so that some resistance occurs when the start gate is being transitioned, for example by means of frictional resistance, or via a detent in the pivotable coupling.

Race course set 14 may include one or more buoyant guides 28 that are adapted to float upon the surface of the water and define the side boundaries of the race course 22. Typically, race course set 14 may include two race course guides 28, each guide serving to define a side of the race course 22. Guides 28 may have any suitable shape or configuration for defining the side boundaries of the race course 22. In one embodiment of the invention, each guide 28 may be tubular, or incorporate one or more tube members.

Guides 28 are typically buoyant, sufficiently flexible that they may be shaped into a simple or reverse curve, and sufficiently resilient that once curved, the guides substantially retain their shape during play. Each guide 28 may be coupled at a first end to start gate 26, and at a second end to finish gate 30, each guide 28 thereby interconnecting the buoyant start platform to the buoyant finish. In one embodiment of the invention, race course set 14 includes a first guide and a second guide that are flexible and buoyant tube members.

In one embodiment of the invention, race course guides 28 may include flexible foam tubes, which may be hollow or incorporate solid foam. The foam tubes may be inherently resilient, or may incorporate stiffening components such as wires, armatures, or the like. Where guides 28 include foam tubes, the guides are typically inherently buoyant.

In another embodiment of the invention, guides 28 include buoyant tubing that may incorporate multiple wall corrugations, such as POPOID tubing, where the wall corrugations permit the tubing to be extended and/or flexed, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3. Where the guides 28 incorporate corrugated tubing, the guides may remain buoyant because the ends of the guides are sealed against water entering the tubing. However, in order to permit the tubing to be extended and compressed, some means of equalizing the internal air pressure of the guide with the atmosphere must be provided. In one embodiment of the invention, each guide 28 includes corrugated tubing that incorporates an air vent positioned above the water line on that guide.

In an alternative embodiment of the invention, race car set 14 is buoyant by means of a start platform 24 and finish gate 30 that may incorporate one or more flotation means, and race course guides 28 are not necessarily required to be additionally buoyant. In this embodiment, race course guides 28 may include flexible non-tubular elements such as railings or panels, for example extruded polypropylene rails. In yet another alternative embodiment, the race course set 14 is not necessarily buoyant, and set 14 is configured to be retained at the water's surface by attachment to a vertical surface, such as the side of a bath tub. For example, race course set 14 may be removably attached to a bath tub by means of multiple suction cups.

Race course set 14 may incorporate one or more decorative elements that may be permanently attached, or removably coupled to one or more components of the race course set 14. For example, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, selected decorative elements include a simulated fuel supply 34 for buoyant toy vehicles 12, and simulated palm trees 36. The decorative elements for race course set 14, when present, may be selected to complement the design of buoyant toy vehicle 12, such as providing an appropriate environment for a buoyant toy vehicle that is configured to appear as a particular character.

In yet another alternate embodiment, the start platform 24 may be extended in order to provide a solid surface for an initial portion of race course 22. After being released by start gate 26, buoyant toy vehicle 12 may traverse the solid surface before reaching the water portion of the race course 22. In this embodiment, buoyant toy vehicle 12 may be configured to be self-propelled on hard surfaces as well on a water surface. Alternatively, or in addition, a terminal portion of race course 22 may include a solid surface, for example to permit buoyant toy vehicle 12 to climb up and out of the water upon reaching the end of race course 22. The terminal solid surface may be incorporated with or coupled to the finish gate 30. In this embodiment, buoyant toy vehicle 12 may be designed to resemble an amphibious vehicle, and the race course set 14 may be decorated to complement the concept of an amphibious vehicle traversing both land and water. For example, buoyant toy vehicle 12 may be configured to resemble an amphibious military landing craft, and race course set 14 may be configured to resemble an amphibious landing site.

The race course sets of the present invention lend themselves to a variety of different types of bath time play for younger children. In one embodiment of the invention, a user may use the race course set in combination with a buoyant toy vehicle that includes a pullback spring motor and drive wheels that incorporate paddle features. In such an embodiment, the user might wind the buoyant toy vehicle by pulling it backward, energizing the pullback spring motor, and thereby energizing the drive wheels of the buoyant toy vehicle. The user may then place the energized buoyant toy vehicle in a starting position on a start platform, where the start gate is in its closed configuration. Using an attached tab or handle, the user may transition the start gate into its open configuration, whereupon the energized drive wheels of the buoyant toy vehicle may propel the buoyant toy vehicle off of the start platform and into the water. As the drive wheels rotate in the water, the paddle features of the drive wheels may propel the buoyant toy vehicle along the defined race course. Where the buoyant toy vehicle encounters one of the boundary guides 28 defining the race course, the contact may redirect the buoyant toy vehicle further along the race course, leading the buoyant toy vehicle toward the finish gate 30, even where the race course defines a curve (for example as shown in FIG. 3). Alternatively, or in addition, the user may employ two buoyant toy vehicles and engage in competitive races between the vehicles (also as shown in FIG. 3). The first vehicle to race from the start gate 26 to the finish gate 30 typically is the winner.

FIGS. 4-7 depict a sequence of events representing an exemplary type of play incorporating a playset according to the present invention. At FIG. 4 a user is shown with a previously energized buoyant toy vehicle in a starting position on a start platform. At FIG. 5, the user has transitioned the start gate into its open configuration, and the drive wheels of the buoyant toy vehicle have begun to propel the buoyant toy vehicle from the start platform and into the water. At FIG. 6, the rotation of the drive wheels in the water propel the buoyant toy vehicle along the race course defined by two race course guides, while at FIG. 7, the buoyant toy vehicle passes beneath a finish gate, ending the race.

Referring to FIG. 8, an alternative arrangement of a playset according to the present invention is illustrated.

The various components of the race course playset disclosed herein may be fabricated from any suitable material, or combination of materials, such as plastic, foamed plastic, wood, cardboard, pressed paper, metal, or the like. A suitable material may be selected to provide a desirable combination of weight, buoyancy, strength, durability, cost, manufacturability, appearance, safety, and the like. More particularly, the materials used to fabricate the components of the race course set may include one or more plastics. Suitable plastics may include high-density polyethylene (HDPE), low-density polyethylene (LDPE), polystyrene, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), polycarbonate, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polypropylene, or the like. Suitable foamed plastics may include expanded or extruded polystyrene, or the like.

Inventions embodied in various combinations and subcombinations of features, functions, elements, and/or properties may be claimed through a later related application, whether they are directed to a different invention or directed to the same invention, whether different, broader, narrower or equal in scope to the original invention, are also regarded as included within the subject matter of the inventions of the present disclosure.

It is believed that the disclosure set forth above encompasses multiple distinct inventions with independent utility. While each of these inventions has been disclosed in its preferred form, the specific embodiments thereof as disclosed and illustrated herein are not to be considered in a limiting sense as numerous variations are possible. The subject matter of the inventions includes all novel and non-obvious combinations and subcombinations of the various elements, features, functions and/or properties disclosed herein. Similarly, where the disclosure recites “a” or “a first” element or the equivalent thereof, such recitation should be understood to include incorporation of one or more such elements, neither requiring nor excluding two or more such elements.

Although the presently disclosed invention has been shown and described with reference to the foregoing operational principles and preferred embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes in form and detail may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. The present invention is intended to embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variances that fall within the scope of the appended claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A playset for use by a user on a water surface, comprising: a toy vehicle configured to travel along the water surface; and a buoyant race course set including: a guide defining a race course on the water surface; a start platform adapted to support the toy vehicle; a start gate adapted to release the toy vehicle from the start platform onto the water surface at a start of the race course; and a finish gate marking an end of the race course.
 2. The playset of claim 1, wherein the toy vehicle is buoyant and configured to propel itself along the water surface.
 3. The playset of claim 2, wherein the toy vehicle includes an energy storage device adapted to store energy; and a propulsion element that is adapted to convert the stored energy to motion of the toy vehicle.
 4. The playset of claim 3, wherein the energy storage device is adapted to store mechanical energy.
 5. The playset of claim 4, wherein the energy storage device is a pullback motor, and the mechanical energy is stored in a component of the pullback motor that is a spring.
 6. The playset of claim 3, wherein the propulsion element is configured to propel the toy vehicle on the surface of the water and includes a propeller or a paddle.
 7. The playset of claim 1, wherein the start platform includes a ramp sloping down to the surface of the water.
 8. The playset of claim 1, wherein the start gate includes a barrier having a closed configuration that prevents the toy vehicle from leaving the start platform, and an open configuration that permits the toy vehicle to leave the start platform.
 9. The playset of claim 8, wherein the barrier is pivotably coupled to the start platform at a lower edge of the inclined ramp, and is configured to be selectively transitioned between the closed configuration and the open configuration.
 10. The playset of claim 1, wherein the guide includes two edge boundaries configured to float on the water surface.
 11. The playset of claim 10, wherein the edge boundaries can be flexed to define a nonlinear race course.
 12. The playset of claim 11, wherein each edge boundary includes an elongate tube, the tube including corrugations that permit the tube to be flexed and/or extended.
 13. The playset of claim 11, wherein each edge boundary includes a flexible foam tube.
 14. The playset of claim 10, wherein each edge boundary is coupled to the start platform at a first end, and coupled to the finish gate at a second end.
 15. The playset of claim 1, wherein the finish gate includes an archway defining the finish line of the race course.
 16. A race course playset, comprising: a first buoyant toy car and a second buoyant toy car, each buoyant toy car configured to propel itself along a water surface; and a buoyant race course including: an inclined start platform defining a start of the buoyant race course; a start gate coupled to the start platform that is configured to be selectively transitioned between a closed configuration that retains the buoyant toy cars on the start platform and an open configuration that release the buoyant toy cars at the start of the race course; an arched finish gate that defines the end of the buoyant race course; and a first side boundary and a second side boundary that are each coupled at a first end to the start platform and coupled at a second end to the arched finish gate, where the first side boundary and second side boundary are configured to flexibly define the race course.
 17. The race course playset of claim 16, wherein the first and second side boundaries each include a flexible and buoyant tube member.
 18. A playset for use on a water surface, comprising: a buoyant start platform with a start gate for a toy vehicle; a buoyant finish gate for a toy vehicle race course; a first flexible and buoyant tube member interconnecting the buoyant start platform to the buoyant finish gate; and a second flexible and buoyant tube member interconnecting the buoyant start platform to the buoyant finish gate; wherein the first tube member and the second tube member collectively define side boundaries of a flexible and buoyant toy vehicle race course.
 19. The playset of claim 18, wherein the start platform includes a ramp sloping down to the surface of the water.
 20. The playset of claim 18, wherein the start gate includes a barrier having a closed configuration that prevents a toy vehicle from leaving the start platform, and an open configuration that permits the toy vehicle to leave the start platform. 